boudoir

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French boudoir, from bouder (“to sulk”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /buˈdwɑɹ/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈbuːdwɑː/

Noun

boudoir (plural boudoirs)

1. A woman's private sitting room, dressing room, or bedroom.
   • 1960, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, “chapter XII”, in Jeeves in the Offing, London: Herbert Jenkins, OCLC 1227855:

     I found her in her boudoir getting outside a dish of tea and a crumpet.

Usage notes

Strictly refers only to a woman’s room, but sometimes used informally or humorously by men to refer to their inner sanctum, as in The Big Sleep (1939), by American writer Raymond Chandler, where Philip Marlowe (the hero, a man) says (p. 53):

“Tut, tut,” I said. “Come into my boudoir.”

Coordinate terms

• cabinet, study (male equivalent)

Translations

woman's private room — see bower

See also

• withdrawing room, drawing room

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French

Etymology

bouder +‎ -oir

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bu.dwaʁ/
• Rhymes: -waʁ

Noun

boudoir m (plural boudoirs)

1. boudoir
2. sponge, ladyfinger

Further reading

• “boudoir” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).